Antidraft apparatus for doors



Aug. 15, 1933. T. YODER 1,922,068

ANTIDRAFT APPARATUS FOR DOORS Filed Opt. 15, 1952 INVENYOR A TTORNE Y Patented Aug. 15, 1933 UNITED, STATES} PATENT OFFICE Application October 13,

4 Claims.

The present invention pertains to apparatus for attachment to doors to prevent drafts from passing beneath them when closed. Among the objects of this invention are: to provide an improved apparatus of the character indicated; to provide an apparatus of the character indicated which is adjustable as to length so as to fit doors of various sizes without having to be out ch in order to fit; to provide an apparatus of the character indicated such that any householder can apply the same without the necessity of calling in a skilled mechanic; and such further objects, advantages, and capabilities as will hereafter appear and as are inherent in the construction disclosed herein. My invention further resides in the combination, construction, and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawing and, while I have shown therein what is now considered the preferred embodiment of this invention, I desire the same to be understood as illustrative only and not to be interpreted in a limiting sense.

In the drawing annexed hereto and forming a part hereof,

Fig. l is a broken fragmentary elevation of the lower portions of a door and casing with my apparatus applied thereto, the door beingshown as closed;

Fig. 2 is a similar fragmentary View at a right angle to Fig. 1 but showing the door open;

Fig. 3 shows a fragmentary transverse sectional elevation substantially along the plane indicated by the line 3 3, Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary horizontal section substantially along the plane indicated by the line 44, Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary transverse section substantially along the plane indicated by the line 5-5, Fig. 1.

Reference will now be made in greater detail to the annexed drawing for a more complete disclosure of this invention. The door is denoted by the numeral 1, the casing by the numeral 2, and the floor or door sill by the numeral 3. The door is separated from the floor or sill 3 by a space which permits the former to swing over any carpet or rug which may be on the floor. Hinges 4 support the door pivotally with relation to the casing.

My new construction is denoted generally by the numeral 5 and comprises a pair of telescopic sections 6 and 7, the former of which is slidable within the latter. These two sections are secured together by means of a bolt and thumb nut 8. The bolt passes through an opening in the sec- 1932. Serial No. 637,567

tion 7 and a slot 9 in the section 6 and it will be apparent that when the thumb nut is loosened it will be possible to adjust the length of the anti-draft appliance by sliding the two sections 6 and 7 relatively to each other. From Fig. 3 it will be apparent that the sections 6 and 7 are made in channel form, open at the bottom for the reception of a strip of felt 10, or the like. The walls of thesechannel-shaped members are drawn together by the bolt and nut 8 so as to prevent them from sliding relatively. These strips are made identical on both sides sothat the device may be turned either side toward the door, thus making it possible to use the device without any change whatsoever upon a door swinging at either the right or left side of the casing.

Depressions 11 are formed upon opposite sides of the device for the reception of the head of the bolt 8 and to assist in stiffening the structure. Diagonal perforations 12 are formed adjacent the two ends of the device for reception of the supporting and guiding screws 13. Upon thesescrews are loosely mounted rollers 14 which serve to reduce the friction as the device 5 slides downwardly to bring the strip 10 into contact with the floor or sill. A washer 15 is placed between the head of the screw 13 and the device 5 so as to reduce the wear upon the metal strips. The sleeves 14 are illustrated as somewhat shorter than the thickness of the device 5 but it is be-" lieved that it would be preferable to have these just a trifle longer than the thickness of thestrip so that the screws would not be turned in too far when mounting the device on the door, thus resulting in binding and improper sliding of the device 5 with relation to the door. The Walls 16 are formed by slotting the metal and bending the edges through to form the outstanding flanges; These increase the area upon which the sleeves 14 travel when the device is being moved up and down.

A part of the end of strip 6 is bent, as illustrated in cross section in Fig. 4 at 17, to form a channel in which the ball 18 may roll during the operation of the device. The plate 19 is fastened to the casing and serves as a track along which the ball rolls as the device 5 moves up and down. Ears 20 are punched from the metal and bent inwardly, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4, to

serve as a stop to prevent the ball 18 from dropping out at the lower end of its course of travel. Upon the upper side of the bar or device 5 is provided a means 21 to which the resilient means 22 may be secured, the second end of the resilient the slots 12.

means being connected, as at 23, to the door. Since this resilient means is put tmder tension when the device is installed and any downward movement of the device will increase this tension, the natural tendency is for the resilient means 22 to raise the bear when this is permitted by the opening of the door. It will be apparent that as the door 1 opens, the resilient means 22 contracts and pulls the bar 5 upwardly and toward the hinge side of the door. Also, when the door closes, the ball 18 comes into contact with the plate 19 and is pushed laterally, carrying the bar 5 with it. The slots 12 and screws 13 compel the bar to travel downwardly at the same time that it travels laterally and this brings the felt or the like 10 down into engagement with the floor or sill.

The face of plate 19 is shown as being shaped to cause the ball 18 to tend to roll toward the door rather than away from it when the door is being closed. This will reduce the amount of friction tending to prevent the bar from sliding down as the door closes. Instead of the hook 21 shown in the drawing, an aperture may be formed in the upper edge of the bar for the reception of the spring 22. If this is done, the spring may be secured well down in the bar so as to be mostly housed therein.

When installing the device, the door is closed and the device placed against the same with the ball 18 substantially in contact with the jamb at one side of the door, the adjusting means 8 being loosened sufliciently so that the section '7 can be adjusted longitudinally of the section 6 until the end thereof is substantially in contact with the other door jamb. The nut is then tightened up to hold the two sections clamped immovably together. The plate 19 may be put in place on the door jamb, either before or after the adjustment of the bar 5, though it would probably be preferable to mount this plate before making this adjustment of the length of the bar. Having adjusted the length of the. bar, the screws 13 are put inplace substantially at the upper ends of These screws are turned in until there is just enough room to permit the bar 5 to slide upwardly and downwardly without binding between the door 1 and the heads of the screws 13. With this adjustment completed, the next step is to attach the spring 22 to the hook 21 and then put the nail or screw 23 through the loop at the other end of the spring, stretch the latter somewhat, and then insert the nail or screw into the door, thus holding the screw under tension. Now, when the door is opened, the spring 22 will contract and pull the bar 5 up until the lower ends of the slots 12 strike the screws 13, thus stopping the upward movement of the bar. Now the device is ready for use. When the door is closed,

the ball 18 strikes the plate 19 and pushes the device toward the swinging edge of the door, thus causing it to move downwardly so that the felt l0 strikes the floor or sill to prevent blowing of wind through the opening beneath the door.

I have indicated that the spring 22 is to be attached to hook 21 after the bar is secured to the door but it will be understood that this may be attached at the factory and will, by preference, be so attached if the end of the spring extends into the interior of the bar.

It will of course be understood that the specific disclosure made herein may be departed from without departing from the spirit of this invention or the scope of the appended claims.

Having now described my invention, I claim:

1. A bar for an anti-draft device for the purpose indicated comprising a pair of roughly fiat channeled units, one fitted within the other and being longitudinally slidable therein, means for securing the two in relatively adjusted position, and floorcontacting resilient means mounted in an edge of the channeled member. r

2. A structure for the purpose indicated comprising a pair of approximately fiat longitudinally channeled members slidable one within the other to secure adjustment of the combined length thereof, the channel of the structure opening downwardly when in position of use, and resilient material mounted in said channel to engage a floor when the structure is in position for use.

3. A structure as defined by claim 2 in which one of the channeled members has alined slots in opposite walls near one end thereof, said slots extending longitudinally thereof and the other member having alining openings in opposite walls thereof near the end thereof which overlaps the other member, and means passing through the openings and slots, said means permitting adjustment of said members longitudinally relative to each other and serving to secure them in adjusted position when the proper length has been secured, opposite faces of said structure being provided with indentations around the aligning openings to receive the head of the means passing through the openings and slots.

4. A structure as defined by claim 1 having in its end adjacent the hinge edge of thefdoor a door due to being pushed away from .thefdoorlwhen the latter is being closed. I

THEODORE DALE YODER. 

